Portuguese Fish Stew

This is a hearty main-course dish that could be served to friends with bread, cheese, and fruit. I especially like it with orzo, a tiny grandular pasta that looks just like rice. (4 to 6 servings) This is Jim Leach's *adapted recipe.

28- ounce can Redpack whole tomatoes in puree or
2 small onions, sliced
5 cloves garlic, chopped
6 leaves fresh basil, or 1 teaspoon dried basil...more if you wish.
salt and freshly ground black pepper
*(a few dashes of tabasco sauce if you wish...for a little zing)
4 tablespoons olive oil
4 Cups chicken stock
1 pound peeled cooked shrimp
1 pound fresh tuna, cut into 1/4 inch strips
1 cup orzo

In a very large pot, cook the tomatoes, onions, garlic, basil and pepper over medium heat for 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the oil. Use a food processor to process the sauce and return it to the pot. Add the chicken stock, bring to a boil, and let it simmer for 10 minutes. The soup can be done ahead of time at this point.

When you are ready to serve the soup, bring it back to a boil. Put in the shrimp and turn off the heat immediately.

Cook the orzo in boiling water. In the bottoms of each soup bowls, put a large spoonful of cooked orzo. Place *raw tuna on top of orzo and ladle the HOT soup over the top of the portions. the heat from the soup will cook the tuna, don't worry about it....it tastes great. You will like it. I promise, its nothing like sushi.